Emily Dickinson Lexicon

bite (bit), v. [OE bitan.] (webplay: eating, frost).

1. Cut; slice; chew; masticate; chop with the teeth.
2. Sting; pinch; cause a sharp pain; hurt with intense cold.

bitter (-er, -est), adj. [OE biter > bitan, bite.] (webplay: cold, cruel, day, keenness, sharp).

1. Unpleasant; grievous; painful; unpalatable to the mind; hard to accept; difficult to bear (see Exodus 1:14).
2. Strong; severe; extreme; sharp; cutting; polar; bitingly frigid; intensely cold.

bitter (-er), adv. [see bitter, adj.]

Unpleasantly; grievously; in a manner difficult to bear.

bitterness, n. [see bitter, adj.] (webplay: painful).

Gall; rancor; resentment; pain; animosity; festering inner anguish; (see Job 7:11).

black, adj. [OE blac.] (webplay: dark, mournful, night).

1. Ebony; sable; swarthy; unlit; colorless due to the total absorption of light; [fig.] evil; wicked; heartless; dreary; gloomy; mournful; deathly; (see 1 Kings 18:45).
2. Phrase. “Black Berry”: blackberry; edible wild currant; dark fruit of the bramble; [fig.] Christ; the crucified Savior.

black, n. [see black, adj.] (webplay: mourning).

1. Darkness; overcast sky; atmosphere which reflects no light; [fig.] sinister thing.
2. Crape; clothing worn in mourning; [fig] grief; mournful attitude; saddened demeanor.

blackbird (-s), n. [see black, adj. + bird, n.] (webplay: singing).

Songster; dark, shiny thrush; songbird whose return from winter habitat symbolizes the arrival of spring.

blackened, verbal adj. [ME blaknen.]

Dark; frost-bit; damaged.

blacksmith, n. [OE blac + smið, skilled worker; see black, adj.]

Forger; metallurgist; craftsman who works in iron and other heavy metals (see Isaiah 54:16).

blade (-s), n. [OE blaed.] (webplay: bone, steel).

1. Knife; sword; sharp object; cutting edge of a weapon (see Judges 3:22).
2. Leaf; foliage; stalk of a plant; [fig.] light; brilliant streak; point of bright color.